President Obama plans to close Guantanamo Bay prison

President Obama plans to meet his 2008 campaign pledge, and has sent Congress a plan to close Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, and plans to transfer up to 60 terrorism suspects to U.S. prisons.

The plan lists 13 possible transfer sites in the U.S. involving federal prisons in Colorado, SouthCarolina, and Kansas, along with six military bases.

Congress has opposed to close down the controversial prison and find it unlikely for the White House proposal to gain any traction during an election year.

If it were easy, it would have happened years ago, as I wanted, but there remains bipartisan support for closing it. Given the stakes involved for our security, this plan deserves a fair hearing even in an election year

President Obama said.

Closing down the controversial prison would save the U.S. an estimated $65 to $85 million a year, more than the cost of relocating the prisoners to a federal U.S. prison. Guantanamo Bay was built after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 and has held over 700 prisoners since. The Pentagon estimates that moving the detainees would save at least $335 million over ten years and up to $1.7 billion over 20 years.

Keeping this facility open is contrary to our values,

Obama said.

Lawmakers from the states of possible relocation strongly oppose the White House plan.

Our states and our communities remain opposed to moving the world’s deadliest terrorists to U.S. soil. The terrorists at Guantanamo Bay are where they should remain -- at Guantanamo Bay.

U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) said.

The president is doubling down on a dangerous plan to close Guantanamo -- a move that I will continue to fight in the Senate,

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